Training: Three Months In

It's been 3 months since I started working with a personal trainer. I'm seeing some changes now, so I thought I'd jot those down.

I started at 60kg (130 lbs), and while I don't have a target weight in mind–preferring to gauge it on how I look & feel–I'm still weighing myself daily. This helps me keep an eye on whether I'm eating enough and that I'm not going down. Even though I'm not aiming for a specific weight, I'm still early in my journey so a loss in weight either means I'm not eating enough or I'm not gaining muscle.

In my first several sessions, we'd start with a 1km row. Initially, it was a 'take as long as you need' kind of thing, but it soon turned into an aim for 4:30, then aim for 4:15, then one day I did a 3:48. That's well below what it could be–a 3:30–but it's all good progress. Whenever we did this, it would wipe me out for the rest of the session, so we don't row much anymore.

We are focusing on weights more though, and this is where I'm noticing the difference. Several weeks back, I'd to struggle with a 6kg dumbbell bench press, now I can do a set of 10x 6kg, 10x 8kgm and 10x 10kg. I can also do a 35kg trap, but unsure what my max would be. Not big numbers by any means, but it's an improvement for sure.

I've also been running more. My distances are still pretty short being in the 1.2km to 1.6km range, but it's something I can do easily without much prep, and again, it's better than nothing.

I'm learning that it's cardio that is my biggest issue. My body just isn't used to it. I did go to the doctors (for free, thanks NHS!) to get some blood tests and an ECG after my PT suggested it for my high heart rate. The ECG was good, with 1 doctor & 2 other nurses all agreeing it's just my body acclimatising. The bloods came back as a vitamin D & B12 deficiencies, for which I take pills for now. It'll take months –even from here–to get to the point where I can run a few kilometers without stopping.

I'd like to do a 5k parkrun by the end of the year, even if that means getting up at 7am on a chilly December morning to do it.